A/N: I felt I needed a Thanksgiving fic based on the Thanksgiving dinner at the end of Child's Play so I wrote a short drabble about it. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
The team was gathered around the table at Ducky's house waiting for their fearless leader to arrive with the rolls he had promised to bring. The food was one the table, the wine was poured, and music filled the air. They might have not been showing it, but there was nowhere else they'd all rather be. None of them had strong connections to their families and it was nice to be surrounded by the dysfunctional family they'd created. Together they've been through it all deaths, shootings, hostage situations; there was nothing they hadn't seen. They learned to lean on each other and accept the changes that came. It was heartbreaking when they lost Kate but they gained Ziva. And although no one liked Vance at first, they'd learned to accept the fact Jenny was gone. Both were still very much missed, but they kept moving forward.
Finally Gibbs arrived, a shopping bag in his hand. The store had run out of rolls so he brought a strange assortment of chips and the like. It didn't matter, they were all together and they were all happy. As they sat around and table and ate, Gibbs had to smile. Family was more than just DNA, it was the people he had surrounded himself with who made worth living. It was the people who forgave him when he "retired" and accepted the fact he had a family that he told no one about. This was his dysfunctional team that through the thick and thin stood by each other. It was the medical examiner who had been there no matter what, even when he disagreed, telling stories and answering the inevitable questions. It was the gothic forensic scientist who he'd come to love as a daughter, always figuring things out and hugging the people she loved. It was the computer geek who he watched transform from a nervous awkward agent from Norfolk to the excellent agent he was today. It was his senior field agent, who had been through so much, but he always kept going and somewhere along the way he learned to mature. It was his Mossad liaison who had changed from a trained assassin, who knew nothing but killing, to a capable agent who could investigate. They weren't replacements for Shannon and Kelly, but rather an addition to his family. Just like Ziva and Vance weren't replacements for Kate and Jenny, but rather additions to their team. Life was too short to spend all your days lonely, passing out under your boat every night. There needed to be someone to bring happiness and cheer to the days and he found that in Abby. Somebody to deal with all the technology he hated so much and he found that in Tim. Somebody to crack inappropriate jokes at all the wrong moments to lighten the moment and he found that in Tony. Somebody who would do anything at all for the ones she loved and he found that in Ziva. And finally somebody who stood by despite the disagreements, the secrets, and everything else, somebody who was always there and that he found in Ziva.
He had many regrets in his life, but surrounding himself with his team was something he could never regret. And in that moment Gibbs couldn't be more grateful for what he had, as long as he remembered to get the rolls earlier next year.